Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities

Local knowledge of Islington communities, along with specialist linguistic skills, ensured Renaisi’s Bilingual Parent Support Advisers gave sensitive, appropriate training to parents

Client: Islington Borough Council

2013-2014

The challenge

Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) is a training course designed to increase parents’ confidence and skills, helping to achieve positive change in family relationships. Participants share knowledge and experience, and learn practical, useful parenting skills around issues such as gangs, community and domestic violence, depression, drugs and alcohol.

Renaisi delivers the SFSC programme through our Bilingual Adviser Service. Schools and local authorities can work with our advisers to bring the course to local families.

Islington Council wanted to provide the course to local parents, with a focus on reducing family and community violence.

Our approach

Renaisi’s BPSAs, who are trained SFSC facilitators, worked with six Islington schools to involve parents in the programme. With their awareness of different languages and cultures, BPSAs were able to engage parents from their own communities to take part in the course. This helped to increase recruitment, and ensured a collaborative and flexible ethos, with each course tailored to the particular needs of the parents attending.

Impact

72 parents took part in the course, which had a 90% pass rate. One parent commented:

“I learned a variety of ideas about how to be a good mother. From now on I consider myself more confident in the way I treat my children. Every parent must do this course to have a better life in the world”

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